Scope of Social Work Practice Social Work in Child Protection

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December 2015 © Australian Association of Social Workers National Office - Melbourne Level 7, 14-20 Blackwood St, North Melbourne, VIC 3051 PO Box 2008, Royal Melbourne Hospital, VIC 3050

Enquiries regarding this document can be directed to:

Senior Manager, Policy & Advocacy: Stephen Brand Email: [email protected] Phone: 02 6199 5000

AASW Chief Executive Officer: Glenys Wilkinson Email: [email protected]

We would like to thank the members of the AASW Child Protection Working Group for their contribution to the writing and development of this document.

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Introduction The social work profession supports and enacts the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of The Australian Association of Social Workers’ the Child, particularly Principle 9 which states (AASW) ‘Scope of Social Work Practice in Child that ‘The child shall be protected against all Protection’ document provides an overview of forms of neglect, cruelty and exploitation.’3 the role, scope, contribution and evidence-base Drawing on knowledge of social work practice, of social work practice in the child protection social sciences, humanities and Indigenous field. It deals with both the tertiary and knowledge, social workers focus on the secondary levels of intervention as described in interface between the individual, their family the public health model for the child services and the environment and recognise the impact welfare context.1 of social, economic and cultural factors on the health and wellbeing of individuals and Child abuse and neglect is a serious problem in communities. Accordingly, social workers Australia, with high prevalence and profound maintain a dual focus in both assisting with and long-term effects. Types of child abuse and improving human wellbeing and identifying and neglect include physical abuse, sexual abuse addressing any external issues that may impact and exploitation, emotional abuse, and on wellbeing, such as inequality, injustice and emotional and physical neglect. There are discrimination. complex interlocking contributing factors leading to child abuse and neglect that make it one of Social work is a tertiary-qualified profession the most demanding of fields of practice. recognised nationally and internationally. The Nonetheless, social work has a long history of AASW is the key professional body involvement in this field in terms of practice, representing social workers in Australia and is policy and program development.2 responsible for the accreditation of university social work programs. The academic With this in mind, the aim of this document is to qualifications that applicants to the AASW are highlight in a concise, accessible and required to hold are: a Bachelor of Social Work, informative manner the crucial role and services Bachelor of Social Work with Honours, or a that social workers provide and that employers Social Work qualifying Master’s degree. and clients can expect. The curriculum provides entry-level professional The social work profession social work education addressing knowledge, skills and values that can be applied across the The social work profession is committed to diverse range of practice settings, fields of maximising the wellbeing of individuals and practice and methods of social work practice, society. We consider that individual and societal and includes an extensive period of field wellbeing is underpinned by socially inclusive education. The Australian Social Work communities that emphasise principles of social Education and Accreditation Standards justice and respect for human dignity and (ASWEAS) specifically nominate ‘child human rights, including the right to be part of a wellbeing and child safety’ as a field of practice loving and understanding family. that is to be addressed in accredited social work courses.4

1 Australian Institute of Family Studies. 2014. Defining the 3 Declaration of the Rights of the Child. Accessed from public health model for the child welfare context. CFCA http://www.unicef.org/malaysia/1959-Declaration-of-the- Resource Sheet. Available at https://goo.gl/oOkfM5 Rights-of-the-Child.pdf 2 Scott, D. & Swain, S. 2002. Confronting cruelty: Historical 4 AASW. 2015. Australian Social Work Education and perspectives on child protection in Australia. Melbourne Accreditation Standards, (ASWEAS) 2012, V1.4, p. 14. University Press. Available at https://www.aasw.asn.au/document/item/3550

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Role of social work in child service providers, to develop policy, and to protection design and deliver services to children involved with the child protection system. This can mean Child protection systems respond to children providing alternative, child-focused and family- who have suffered or are likely to suffer inclusive care arrangements to families who significant harm as the result of abuse and require assistance to continue to care for their neglect. Australian state and territory children. It can also involve delivering and governments have jurisdiction over the supporting alternative care arrangements for provision of child protection services with children who are unable to safely remain in or legislative, policy and practice frameworks return to their parents’ care. These interventions differing across the country. While most social require high-level communication skills in workers practice within a legislative framework, emotionally charged and highly complex and the legislative policy and practice frameworks contested situations. Using statutory authority to for statutory or tertiary-level child protection safeguard children and encourage change is a social workers are particularly complex. crucial part of the role. To undertake such Furthermore, the phenomenon of child abuse complex work, social workers should be and neglect is itself complex; socially, providing and receiving appropriate social work psychologically and environmentally. Working in supervision which encourages reflective this role is also emotionally demanding and on practice and ongoing professional development. some rare occasions can be dangerous for 5 The various settings and fields of practice social workers. include:

Social workers report being acutely conscious • State statutory child protection agencies that the issues are so complex that agencies • Specialist family support and counselling working alone are generally ineffective in services achieving good outcomes and hence a collaborative approach is essential. This • Foster care collaboration should not only be across related • Residential care child protection agencies, but should include schools and pre-schools, general practitioners, • Children’s commissions police, and child care facilities, to mention just a • Forensic and correctional services few. Importantly, collaboration should involve • Hospital and community health the immediate and extended family and significant others. It should be acknowledged • Joint investigation response teams that regardless of collaboration, due to the • Child wellbeing units nature of the problems being addressed, the outcomes achieved are frequently not • Adoption agencies universally considered to be ‘good’ outcomes. • Management and governance Explicit in most child protection work is a tension between support of the child and the family and the need to set boundaries for family behaviours that may lead to serious harm for a child.

Social workers work with other professionals across government and non-government

5 Stanley, J. & Goddard, C. 2002. In the firing line: Violence and power in child protection work. Wiley.

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Scope of social work practice • Establishing client–social worker in child protection collaborative relationships in which the statutory role of the social worker is clearly Social workers draw on a broad range of explained theories, knowledge, research and skills to • Therapeutically informed interventions that ensure comprehensive and holistic analysis of acknowledge the complexities of trauma, the client’s situation. Social workers’ grief and loss expressed often as fear, assessments range from targeted and brief anger or sadness specific-needs analyses through to • Facilitating networks for the child and comprehensive holistic psychosocial and risk family based on high level knowledge assessments of the full range of social and about social systems and community psychological needs, strengths and stressors. networks, including the facilitation of These assessments underpin targeted and kinship networks needs-based interventions to address the social • Socio-legal and ethical decision making and emotional issues that are impacting on the within complex legal frameworks in which individual’s health, development and wellbeing. the best interest of the child is paramount The scope of social work practice in child • Planning for long-term stability (in some protection includes: jurisdictions, permanency planning), which • Attending to the physical, emotional, has at its centre the need of the child for educational needs and spiritual wellbeing ongoing continuity and belonging, as well of children who enter the child protection as timely planning and decision making, system culturally appropriate placements and collaborative decision making • Early identification of vulnerability, risk reduction and strengthening supportive • Family intervention and support, which and protective factors includes family therapy and family case conferencing and decision making • Risk assessment in relation to child abuse and neglect, cumulative harm, family • Child-focused/therapeutic interventions violence and intimate partner violence. that are used in working with highly Risk assessment also includes the ability traumatised children to assess child protection reports received • Leadership in case management and in from the community and weighing the the collaboration of services both within evidence from other agencies such as the and external to the child protection system police and health teams • Advocacy in relation to the rights of • Comprehensive psychosocial assessments children, their families and carers that are strengths-based and child- focused. Such assessments include • Attention specifically to cultural issues comprehensive family assessments that when placing Aboriginal and Torres Strait consider the child’s needs and the whole Islander children, given their over- care environment of the child with an aim representation in state care of making recommendations, therapeutic • Supporting foster carers to meet the needs assessments, parenting capacity practical and therapeutic care needs of assessments, carer assessments and to children and delivering residential care inform interventions services

• Crisis intervention in addressing the needs • Advocating for after care supports for 18– of families at risk of having their children 25 year old young people placed in care • Developing policy, engaging in research and publishing peer reviewed journals.

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Contribution of social work Within specialist family support and counselling services Significant numbers of social workers practise in child wellbeing and protection settings in a • Providing professional assessments and range of roles including direct case work, interventions management and policy. No other professional • Strengthening families and their extended discipline is so immersed in the areas of network to enable children to remain safely knowledge that are essential for quality at home relationship-based child protection practice. As a result, social workers are recognised • Facilitating the timely return of children to throughout the world as the core professional their families of origin with appropriate group in child protection policy, management support and practice. Social workers offer a unique and • Addressing the ongoing effects of trauma valuable contribution in providing appropriate among children who have been abused or and targeted child-centred services as well as neglected. facilitating referral pathways that ensure the linking of services, access and equity. Within foster care agencies

Social workers contribute at an • Providing professional assessments of organisational level by: prospective foster carers so as to ensure a Within State Child Protection systems high standard of foster carers

• Promoting the safety, stability and • Providing ongoing high-level support and development of children by providing advice for children and foster carers to professional assessments and increase stability of placements

interventions that safeguard children at risk Within residential settings of abuse • Ensuring a high standard of management • Reducing the number of children entering and specialist advice so that children are into care unnecessarily safe, their rights are respected and their • Facilitating the timely return of children to individual needs are addressed

their families of origin with appropriate Within children’s commissions interventions to address concerns and to • Advocating for children in the care of the assist parents to care appropriately for state both individually and at a systemic their children level ensuring that the voice of the child is • Facilitating timely plans for children who heard cannot return safely to their families of Within systems reducing the over- origin representation of Indigenous children in • Providing ongoing support to children and care their carers so as to safeguard children’s • Considering holistic interventions and rights alternatives and working with Aboriginal • Facilitating the wellbeing and stability of and Torres Strait Islander services placement

• Facilitating the collaboration of the wide variety of agencies concerned with child protection.

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Within diverse multicultural communities Conclusion

• By encouraging an openness to different Social workers offer a unique role within the world views and developing skills in social services with their holistic approach to culturally sensitive interventions including assessment and their commitment to human listening to and working with community rights and advocacy within a multidisciplinary elders and multi-agency environment. Within the courts They make valuable contributions in providing • Providing assessment and supporting appropriate and targeted services to children documentation and oral evidence for and their families when there are concerns children’s court orders for statutory about a child’s wellbeing or safety, mindful of intervention, during interim, restoration or trauma-informed frameworks and long-term protection orders intergenerational links. Importantly social workers help reduce the incidence of abuse and Within non child protection specific neglect, support families to raise their children agencies to their full potential. They also assist families to • Ensuring child-focused models of care are relate in more positive ways and children to integrated and part of adult services where thrive in their parental care wherever possible. there may be children at risk, such as drug Social workers help reduce the effects of trauma, contribute to child-centred planning and health, mental health and emergency the increased stability of placements. services

Across agencies Accordingly, social work should have a significant role in the child protection system. • Promoting the exchange of information between agencies to ensure the safety and wellbeing of children and efficient collaboration of services

Within management and governance

• Ensuring systems that place the needs of children and their safety first

• Designing and implementing services, developing practice advice for child protection staff

• Evaluating programs to improve efficacy and conducting research to increase the evidence base for practice.

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Evidence informing practice

Key journals Key articles/chapters

Australian Social Work Baglow, L. 2009. Social work supervision and its role in enabling a community visitor program Child Abuse and Neglect that promotes and protects the rights of Child Abuse Review children, Australian Social Work, 62:3, 353-368.

Child and Youth Services Gillingham, P. 2015. Social work and child Children and Youth Services Review protection in Australia: Whose job is it anyway? Practice: Social Work in Action, doi Journal of Interpersonal Violence 10.1080/09503153.2015.1074670 Social Services Review Healy, K. 2010. Recognising and enabling social workers to promote child wellbeing and protection, Australian Social Work, 63(2), 141-

144.

Mendes, P., & Moslehuddin, B. 2006. From dependence to interdependence: Towards better outcomes for young people leaving state care. Child Abuse Review, 15, 110-126.

Munro, E. 2011. The Munro Review of Child

Protection: Final Report. A Child-centred System. Available at https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system

/uploads/attachment_data/file/175391/Munro- Review.pdf

Scott, D. 2006. Towards a public health model of child protection in Australia. Communities, Children and Families Australia, 1(1), 9-16.

Scott, D. 2009. Think child, think family: How

adult specialist services can support children at- risk of abuse and neglect. Family Matters, 81, 37-42.

Trotter C. 2002. Worker skill and client outcome

in child protection, Child Abuse Review, Vol. 11, 38-50.

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